In recent years sophistication of television programming techniques has resulted in increasing use of puppets and two-dimensional caricatures with the increased need for more life-like simulation as well as simplicity of operation of the apparatus involved. Representative of past efforts are U.S. Pat. No. 3,070,920 (by the present inventor) and U.S. Pat. No. 3,691,676, both of which relate to two-dimensional animated characters particularly adapted for television.
The present invention is an improvement on the inventor's prior patent identified above, in that it makes possible the attainment of a more nearly life-like animated character with a greater variety of movements and expressions while at the same time optimizing on the control mechanisms required. Another important improvement on the inventor's prior patent is that the present invention makes it possible to place the character over a background without the background being visible through the facial area.